Northwestern football sets season-ticket holder record

Northwestern has surpassed its modern-era record for football season-ticket holders, breaking the mark set during the 1997 season, the school announced.

Capitalizing on momentum from five straight bowl game appearances, its first bowl victory since 1949 and a top 25 preseason ranking, the Wildcats are on track to have doubled their football season-ticket base since launching the "Chicago's Big Ten Team" marketing campaign in 2010.

The team did not disclose the new total number of season-ticket holders.

The previous record in came after back-to-back Big Ten championship seasons in 1995 and 1996. The Wildcats also won the conference title in 2000, but followed that with only one winning season between 2001 and 2007.

"Achieving an all-time season-ticket sales record for Northwestern Football was a goal that was set for this development, and it's a credit to the leadership of the University as well as our outstanding staff that we have met that standard," Northwestern Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing Ryan Chenault said in a news release.

Northwestern plays seven games at 47,130-seat Ryan Field this season, a slate that includes Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State.

That high-caliber home schedule also likely played a factor in season ticket sales, with Chicago-based alumni of other schools purchasing season-ticket packages to guarantee seats when their alma mater is in town.